Who here can or can't paint and stencil thier own cabinets?

DPtwiz

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Who here can or can't paint and stencil thier own cabinets?

I'm curious how many of you can, or can't paint and stencil your own cabs, and if not, why.

I know Phet, spyridon, and quite a few others do amazing work on here. I get asked alot for painted and stenciled cabinets, and Jpopson on here does all that for me. I personally have never tried it. My reason is i really can't paint at my house, because of the fumes, my daughter can't be around it. I am thinking about putting up a paint booth, with filtration so i can.

I just want to know why more people don't do it. I assume equipment, lack of a space to do it in, etc. Seriously contemplating doing painted cabinets in quantity, not just a one off here and there. I'm talking like 10 of one cab. Moon patrol is one that will be getting done in January, i know i have two that will be painted/stenciled.
 
I can do it here, but it's VERY difficult and messy. Timing is key when you are pulling off the stencils, too wet or too dry will give you problems.
 
Yep, messy as hell. My garage is covered in over spray as is part of my driveway. I HATE the process, but I love the way they look when done.

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Showoff. :) Damn those look so nice!!!! Wish you were in SO CAL.

Get some T-molding on that Taito cab, looks like a snail without a shell!



Yep, messy as hell. My garage is covered in over spray as is part of my driveway. I HATE the process, but I love the way they look when done.
 
Showoff!! :) Damn those look so nice!!!! But get some T-molding on that Taito cab, looks like a snail without a shell.

Yeah, I did 3 and a half years ago. I just never took a good pic of it with the molding in place until the day it shipped out with old Marble Madness.

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Now that I have dedicated shop space (enclosed our car port), I will have a good location for doing this and I've had stencils for my Elevator Action and Crazy Climber waiting for a long time. I look forward to giving it a go, and my Ms Pac could stand to be re-stenciled eventually too.
 
I can paint... though I'm not a huge fan. :) Actually, the prep is what I hate more (sanding is hell!)...
 
I would say that the first time you stencil a cabinet, you will definitely make some mistakes. I feel I did the Stargate right, but it was after some DIY stencil fails on a pinball project, so I had a little bit of experience at this point.

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As others have said, the prep and mess suck... but the final product makes it worth it. Here's my first and only attempt at stenciling- I rolled the cabinet and used rattle cans for the stencils. Still, it's a big mess.

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I've only got one left to do, then that's it. No more stenciling for me. Yay!!


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I have to restore one of these as well, is there a place to get stencils for the front? I've only seen a few out there for the sides of the cabinet, not the front.

As for me, the only restoration I've done is my Vs. Unisystem Orange (No stenciling, just one giant sticker :)) http://forums.arcade-museum.com/showthread.php?t=251829

I rolled paint on that cabinet. I just don't have the room in my garage nor the tools for spraying as I've seen some people do. Also I live in a very wooded area, many flying insects, I've had a few bugs land on things I have spray painted outside.
 
The key to stencils being easy is this... automotive lacquer. Not everyone is set up or ready to use that kind of paint so the default go to is rattle cans or home depot paint.. that route works but like people have said, it's messy, time consuming and often difficult to judge when to remove the stencils.

Now, when you use automotive paints all those issues go away. Paints dry almost instantly, stencils can be removed mere minutes after painting with zero concerns about tearing or flaws.. not to mention the color gamut that auto paints can match when a talented paint mixer is on it.

The down sides, you MUST wear a respirator, MUST have hvlp gun and must have more cash as custom mixed paints will cost about 40 bucks a quart. Luckily, base colors are readily available at auto part stores in addition to primers.
 
I have an Hvlp Gun new in the box from 3 years ago, even bought a stand for it. I have a 50" Vinyl cutter w/stand, been sitting here since febuary, i've never even plugged it in. I bought a 60 gallon Ingersol Rand 2 stage compressor, so i have pretty much everything i need to do it in house, except a spray booth! I definately got to give it a try. Phet's pac is definately perfection.
 
It's one of those things where it just doesn't make sense for everyone to do it. With all the equipment and the crazy learning curve, it makes sense to have a few people who can do it and everybody else pays them.
 
I did all the lettering and stripes on my Rampage cabinet by hand. I went through a ton of masking tape. This was right before reproduction art was made like I finished 3 months before the stuff was even started.

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I've only got one left to do, then that's it. No more stenciling for me. Yay!!


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I'll step into the line of fire here since no one else will. I've never even tried to stencil my own cab. That said, I wouldn't want to try it in my 1 bedroon condo and I bet the HOA would freak out if I tried in my carport. But give me a sticker and it is all good. :)

Moving on, this cabinet above is in beautiful shape. It reflects what I refer to as "light arcade usage" and is indicative of the condition of most the games I own. Phet your restorations are top notch. Things of beauty they are without question. But if my friend brings their kid over and knocks the pole lamp over into my Centipede (actually happened), I'd probably be pretty upset if I had "full restorations" whereas with machines that already show light arcade use it just blends right in. I know that the fun for some of you must be in doing this fine work, but I'd rather have machines that reflect gentle usage and spend all that time doing something else. After all, it's an arcade, not a museum. Now hit me with your best shot... :cool:
 
I'll step into the line of fire here since no one else will. I've never even tried to stencil my own cab. That said, I wouldn't want to try it in my 1 bedroon condo and I bet the HOA would freak out if I tried in my carport. But give me a sticker and it is all good. :)

Moving on, this cabinet above is in beautiful shape. It reflects what I refer to as "light arcade usage" and is indicative of the condition of most the games I own. Phet your restorations are top notch. Things of beauty they are without question. But if my friend brings their kid over and knocks the pole lamp over into my Centipede (actually happened), I'd probably be pretty upset if I had "full restorations" whereas with machines that already show light arcade use it just blends right in. I know that the fun for some of you must be in doing this fine work, but I'd rather have machines that reflect gentle usage and spend all that time doing something else. After all, it's an arcade, not a museum. Now hit me with your best shot... :cool:

Who uses pole lamps still? ;)
 
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